Enter records

ID: 60570
Title: Estimating leaf chlorophyll of barley at different growth stages using spectral indices to reduce soil background and canopy structure effects.
Author: Kang Yu, Victoria Lenz-Wiedemann, Xinping Chen, Georg Bareth.
Editor: Derek Lichti
Year: 2014
Publisher: Elsevier B.V.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: PHOTOGRAMMETRY AND REMOTE SENSING Vol 97 58-77 (2014)
Subject: APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATION AND GEOINFORMATION
Keywords: Leaf chlorophyll, Spectral indices, Partial least squares, Precision agriculture, Ratio of reflectance difference index (RRDI) Support vector machines, Spring barley, Lambda by-lambda band optimization.
Abstract: Monitoring in situ chlorophyll (Chl) content in agricultural crop leaves is of great importance for stress detection, nutritional state diagnosis, yield prediction and studying the mechanisms of plant and environment interaction. Numerous spectral indices have been developed for chlorophyll estimation from leaf-and canopy-level reflectance. However, in most cases, these indices are negatively affected by variations in canopy structure and soil background. The objective of this study was to develop spectral indices that can reduce the effects of varied canopy structure and growth stages for the estimation of leaf Chl. Hyperspectral reflectance data was obtained through simulation by a radiative transfer model, PROSAIL, and measurements from canopies of barley comprising different cultivars across growth stages using spectroradiometers. We applied a comprehensive band-optimization algorithm to explore five types of spectral indices: reflectance difference (RD), reflectance ratio (RR), normalized reflectance difference (NRD), difference of reflectance ratio (DRR) and ratio of reflectance difference (RRD). Indirectly using the multiple scatter correction (MSC) theory, we hypothesized that RRD can eliminate adverse effects of soil background, canopy structure and multiple scattering. Published indices and multivariate models such as optimum multiple band regression (OMBR), partial least squares regression (PLSR) and support vector machines for regression (SVR) were also employed. Results showed that the ratio of reflectance difference index (RRDI) optimized for simulated data significantly improved the correlation with Chl (R2= 0.98, p<0.0001) and was insensitive to LAI variations (1-8), compared to widely used indices such as MCARI/ OSAVI (R2=0.64, p <0.0001) and TCARI/OSAVI (R2=0.74, p< 0.0001). The RRDI optimized for barley explained 76% of the variation in Chl and outperformed multivariate models. However, the accuracy decreased when employing the indices for individual growth stages (R2<0.59). Accordingly, RRDIs optimized for open and closed canopies improved the estimations of Chl for individual stages before and after canopy closure, respectively, with R2 of 0.65 (p<0.0001) and 0.78 (p< 0.0001). This study shows that RRDI can efficiently eliminate the effects of structural properties on canopy reflectance response to canopy biochemistry. The results yet are limited to the datasets used in this study; therefore, transferability of the methods to large scales or other datasets should be further evaluated.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Asner, G.P., 1998. Biophysical and biochemical sources of variability in canopy reflectance. Remote Sens. Environ. 64 (3), 234-253. Asner, G.P., Martin, R.E., 2008. Spectral and chemical analysis of tropical forests: scaling from leaf to canopy levels. Remote Sens. Environ. 112 (10), 3958-3970.
Literature cited 2: Bajwa, S.G., Mishra, A.R., Norman, R.J., 2010. Canopy reflectance response response to plant nitrogen accumulation in rice. Precision Agric. 11 (5), 488-506. Bannari, A., Morin, D., Bonn, F., Huete, A.R., 1995. A review of vegetation indices. Remote Sens. Rev. 13 (1-2), 95-120.

ID: 60569
Title: Automatic histogram-based fuzzy C-means clustering for remote sensing imagery.
Author: Saman Ghaffarian, Salar Ghaffarian.
Editor: Derek Lichti
Year: 2014
Publisher: Elsevier B.V.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: PHOTOGRAMMETRY AND REMOTE SENSING Vol 97 46-57 (2014)
Subject: APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATION AND GEOINFORMATION
Keywords: Automatic clustering, Fuzzy C-means clustering, Histogram-based, Hyperspectral imagery, Image fusion, Remote sensing imagery.
Abstract: Fuzzy C-means (FCM) clustering has been widely used in analyzing and understanding remote sensing images. However, the conventional FCM algorithm is sensitive to initialization, and it requires estimations from expert users to determine the number of clusters. To overcome the limitations of the FCM algorithm, an automatic histogram-based fuzzy C-means (AHFCM) algorithm is presented in this paper. Our proposed algorithm has two primary steps: 1- clustering each band of a multispectral image by calculating the slope for each point of the histogram, in two directions, and executing the FCM clustering algorithm based on specific rules, and 2-automatic fusion of labeled images is used to initialize and determine the number of clusters in the FCM algorithm for automatic multispectral image clustering. The performance of our proposed algorithm is first tested on clustering a very high resolution aerial images, a high resolution Worldview2 satellite image, a Landsat 8 satellite image and an EO-1hyperspectral image, for a constant number of clusters. The superiority of the new method is demonstrated by comparing it with the well-known methods of FCM, K-means, fast global FCM (FGFCM) and kernelized fast global FCM (KFGFCM) clustering algorithms, both quantitatively by calculating the DB, XB and SC indices and qualitatively by visualizing the cluster results.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Ahmed, M.N., Yamany, S.M., Mohamed, N., Farag, A.A., Moriarty, T., 2002. A modified fuzzy C-means algorithm for bias field estimation and segmentation of MRI data. IEEE Trans. Med. Imag. 21, 193-199. Bensaid, A., Hall, L.O., Bezdek, J., Clarke, L.P., Silbiger, M.L., Arrington, J.A., Murtagh, R.F., 1996. Validity-guided (Re) clustering for image segmentation. IEEE Trans. Fuzzy Syst. 4, 112-123.
Literature cited 2: Bezdek, J.C., 1981. Pattern Recognition With Fuzzy Objective Function Algorithms. Plenum, New York. Biosca, J.M., Lerma, J.L., 2008. Unsupervised robust planar segmentation of terrestrial laser scanner point clouds based of fuzzy clustering methods. ISPRS J. Photogrammetry Remote Sens. 63, 84-98.

ID: 60568
Title: An efficient semi-supervised classification approach for hyperspectral imagery.
Author: Kun Tan, Erzhu Li, Qian Du, Peijun Du.
Editor: Derek Lichti
Year: 2014
Publisher: Elsevier B.V.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: PHOTOGRAMMETRY AND REMOTE SENSING Vol 97 36-45 (2014)
Subject: APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATION AND GEOINFORMATION
Keywords: Hyperspectral, Semi-supervised leaning, Classification, Segmentation, Spectral-spatial feature, SVM.
Abstract: In this paper, an efficient semi-supervised support vector machine (SVM) with segmentation-based ensemble (S2SVMSE) algorithm is proposed for hyperspectral image classification. The algorithm utilizes spatial information extracted by a segmentation algorithm for unlabeled sample selection. The unlabeled samples that are most similar to the labeled ones are found and the candidate set of unlabeled samples to be chosen is enlarged to the corresponding image segments. To ensure the finally selected unlabeled samples be spatially widely distributed and less correlated, random selection is conducted with the flexibility of the number of unlabeled samples actually participating in semi-supervised learning. Classification is also refined through a spectral-spatial feature ensemble technique. The proposed method with very limited labeled training samples is evaluated via experiments with two real hyperspectral images, where it outperforms the fully supervised SVM and semi-supervised version without spectral-spatial ensemble.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Bai, J., Xiang, S.M., Pan, C.H., 2013. A graph-based classification method for hyperspectral images. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens. 51 (2), 803-817. Bioucas-Dias, J., Plaza, A., Camps-Valls, G., Scheunders, P., Nasrabadi, N., Chanussot, J., 2013. Hyperspectral remote sensing data analysis and future challenges. Geosci. Remote Sens. Mag., IEEE 1 (2), 6-36.
Literature cited 2: Bioucas-Dias, J.M., Nascimento, J.M.P., 2008. Hyperspectral subspace identification. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens. 46 (8), 2435-2445. Bruzzone, L., Chi, M.M., Marconcini, M., 2006. A novel transductive SVM for semisupervised classification of remote-sensing images. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens. 44 (11), 3363-3373.

ID: 60567
Title: Fusion of imaging spectroscopy and airborne laser scanning data for characterization of forest ecosystems-A review.
Author: Hossein Torabzadeh, Felix Morsdorf, Michael E. Schaepman.
Editor: Derek Lichti
Year: 2014
Publisher: Elsevier B.V.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: PHOTOGRAMMETRY AND REMOTE SENSING Vol 97 25-35 (2014)
Subject: APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATION AND GEOINFORMATION
Keywords: Forest ecosystems, Data fusion, Airborne laser scanning, Imaging spectroscopy.
Abstract: Forest ecosystems play an important role in the global carbon cycle and it is largely unknown how this role might be altered by transients imposed by global change and deforestation. Remote sensing can provide information on ecosystem state and functioning and , among others, two remote sensing techniques, airborne laser scanning (ALS) and imaging spectroscopy (IS), have been used to characterize forest ecosystems, both independently and combined in fusion approaches. However, the fusion of these datasets should make the best use of the complementarity of both sensors and provide better and more robust vegetation products in forested ecosystems. Similar to other data fusion approaches, satisfying results depends on choosing appropriate fusion levels and methods. In this review paper, we summarize and classify relevant studies that focused on forest characterization using combined ALS and IS data, limited to the last decade. We classified the approaches by fusion level (data or product level) and by choice of methods (physical or empirical methods). Five different categories of products (landcover maps, aboveground biomass, biophysical paramerters, gross/net primary productivity and biochemical parameters), have been found as the main aspects of forest ecosystems studied so far. A qualitative accuracy analysis of the products exposed that currently land cover maps are profiting the most from ALS and IS data fusion, while there is room for improvements in respect to the other products, such as biophysical parameters. Only few studies using physical approaches were found, but we expect the use of such approaches will increase with the growing availability of physically based radiative transfer models that can simulate both, ALS and IS data.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Anderson, J., Plourde, L., M., Braswell, B., Smith, M., Dubayah, R., Hofton, M., Blair, J., 2008. Integrating waveform lidar with hyperspectral imagery for inventory of a northern temperate forest. Remote sens Environ. 112 (4), 1856-1870 Antonarakis, A.S., Munger, J.W., Moorcroft, P.R., 2014. Imaging spectroscopy-and lidar-derived estimates of canopy composition and structure to improve predictions of forest carbon fluxes and ecosystemdynamics.Geophys.Res.Lett.41 (7), 2535-2542.http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/2013GL058373.
Literature cited 2: Arroyo, L.A., Johansen, K., Armston, J., Phinn, S., 2010. Integration of LiDAR and QuickBird imagery for mapping riparian biophysical parameters and land cover types in Australian tropical savannas. For.Ecol. Manage. 259 (3), 598-606. Asner, G.P., Martin, R.E., 2008. Spectral and chemical analysis of tropical forests: scaling from leaf to canopy levels. Remote Sens. Environ. 112 (10), 3958-3970.

ID: 60566
Title: Adaptive non-local Euclidean medians sparse unmixing for hyperspectral imagery.
Author: Ruyi Feng, Yanfei Zhong, Liangpei Zhang.
Editor: Derek Lichti
Year: 2014
Publisher: Elsevier B.V.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: PHOTOGRAMMETRY AND REMOTE SENSING Vol 97 9-24 (2014)
Subject: APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATION AND GEOINFORMATION
Keywords: Hyperspectral imagery, Non-local Euclidean medians, Non-local means, Adaptive, Sparse unmixing.
Abstract: Sparse unmixing models based on sparse representation theory and a sparse regression model have been successfully applied to hyperspectral remote sensing image umixing. To better utilize the abundant spatial information and improve the unmixing accuracy, spatial sparse unmixing methods such as the non-local sparse unmixing (NLSU) approach have been proposed. Although the NLSU method utilizes non-local spatial information as the spatial regularization term and obtains a satisfactory unmixing accuracy, the final abundances are affected by the non-local neighborhoods and drift away from the true abundance values when the observed hyperspectral images have high noise levels. Furthermore, NLSU contains two regularization parameters which need to be appropriately set in real applications, which is a difficult task and often has a high computational cost. To solve these problems, an adaptive non-local Euclidean medians sparse unmixing (ANLEMSU) method is proposed to improve NLSU by replacing the non-local means total variation spatial consideration with the non-local Euclidean medians filtering approach. In addition, ANLEMSU utilizes a joint maximum a posteriori (JMAP) strategy to acquire the relationships between the regularization parameters and the estimated abundances, and achieves the fractional abundances adaptively, without the need to set the two regularization parameters manually. The experimental results using both simulated data and, hence, provides an effective option for the unmixing of hyperspectral remote sensing imagery.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Bioucas-Dias, J.M., Plaza, A., Dobigeon, N., Parente, M., Du, Q., Gader, P., Chanussot, J., 2012. Hyperspectral unmixing overview: geometrical, statistical, and sparse regression-based approaches. IEEE J. Sel. Top. Appl. Earth Observ. Rem. Sens. (JSTARS) 5 (2), 354 -379. Bioucas-Dias, J.M., Plaza, A., Camps-Valls, G., Scheunders, P., Nasrabadi, N.M., Chanussot, J., 2013. Hyperspectral remote sensing data analysis and future challenges.IEEE Geosci.Rem.Sens.Mag. 1(2), 6-36.
Literature cited 2: Buades, A., Coll, B., Morel, J.M., 2005a. A review of image denoising algorithms, with a new one. Multiscale Model. Simul. 4 (2), 490-530. Buades, A., Coll, B., Morel, J.M., 2005. A non-local algorithm for image denoising. In: IEEE Computer Society Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (CVPR 2005), vol. 2, pp. 60-65.

ID: 60565
Title: A very fast phase inversion approach for small baseline style interferogram stacks
Author: Kui Zhang, Zhenzhou Li, Guojie Meng, Yaqiong Dai.
Editor: Derek Lichti
Year: 2014
Publisher: Elsevier B.V.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: PHOTOGRAMMETRY AND REMOTE SENSING Vol 97 1-8 (2014)
Subject: APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATION AND GEOINFORMATION
Keywords: Derivative-based optimization, Weighted least squares, Phase inversion, Interferometric time-series analysis, Interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR), Satellite remote sensing.
Abstract: The recently developed interferometric time-series analysis techniques have shown great potential in ground surface deformation monitoring applications. Such techniques overcome the drawbacks of the traditional differential radar interferometry (DInSAR) and can achieve millimeter-level measurement accuracy. One of the most important operations in interfereometric time-series analysis techniques-referred to as phase inversion-is to estimate relative deformation velocity and digital elevation model error from a double-differenced interferometric phase time-series. Unfortunately, current phase inversion methods generally exhibit a low computational efficiency due to their high non-linearity, especially in the case when the dimension of an interferogram stack is large. In this paper, a new approach is proposed to efficiently resolve phase inversion problems defined on stacks constructed by interferograms with small baselines. The approach separates an estimation procedure into two parts. First, preliminary estimates are obtained by weighted least squares. Then, the estimates are refined by optimizing the corresponding ensemble phase coherence function. The proposed approach was applied to simulated and real data. Experimental results demonstrate that it can accurat4ely address the phase inversion problem with a very high computational performance.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Berardino, P., Fornaro, G., Lanari, Sansosti, E., 2002. A new algorithm for surface deformation monitoring based on small baseline differential SAR intrferograms. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens. 40, 2375-2383. Bhattacharya, A.., Voge, M., Arora, M.K., Sharma, M.L., Bhasin, R.K., 2013.Surface displacement estimation using multi-temporal SAR interferometry in a seismically active region of the Himalaya. Georisk: Assess.Manage.Risk Eng.Syst. Geohazards 7, 1-14.
Literature cited 2: Blanco-Sanchez, P., Mallorqui, J., Duque, S., Monells, D., 2008. The coherent pixels technique (CPT): an advanced DInSAR technique for nonlinear deformation monitoring. Pure Appl.Geophys.165, 1167-1193. Colesanti, C., Wasowski, J., 2006. Investigating landslides with space-borne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) interferometry. Eng.Geol. 88, 173-199.

ID: 60564
Title: Mangrove Sediment Metals from Southeast Coast of India.
Author: Kollimalai Sakthivel and Kandasamy Kathiresan.
Editor: Professor V. Subramanian
Year: 2014
Publisher: Capital Publishing Company.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution.vol.11 (4) 89-96 (2014)
Subject: water, Environment and Pollution.
Keywords: Mangroves, sediment, heavy metals, iron, copper, cadmium, lead, nickel.
Abstract: Heavy metals such as iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), cobalt (Co), lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) concentration range were 13330-32500 ppm, 260-780 ppm, 32.7-158 ppm, 27.6-82.6 ppm, 15.6-46.8 ppm, 5.46-42.7 ppm, 3.48-14.7 ppm and 0.15-1.75 ppm reported respectively. At all the sampling sites, the mean concentrations were found to follow the decreasing orders: Fe>.Mn>Zn>Cu>Ni>Co>Pb>Cd. ANOVA of variation ratio and level of significance between study areas were 1 % significant except manganese (5%) and copper (not significant). Statistical reports also showed 1 % significant except cadmium (5%). Iron and zinc can be considered as high level of contamination and a serious threat, copper was a moderate to serious threat, nickel slight contamination and cadmium no hazards.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Alloway, B.J. (1990).Soil process and the behaviour of metals. In: Aloway, B.J. (ed.), Heavy metals in soils. Blackie, Wiley, New York. Alloway, B.J. (1995). Heavy metals in soil. 2nd Edition. Chapman and Hall, United Kingdom.
Literature cited 2: Ananthan, G., Ganesan, M., Sampathkumar, P., Mathevan Pillai, M.and L. Kannan (1992). Distribution of tract metals in water, sediment and plankton of the Vellar estury. Seaweed Research Utilization, 15: 69-75. Ananthan, G., Sampathkumar, P., Palpandi, C. and L. Kannan (2006). Distribution of heavy metals in Vellar estuary, Southeast coast of India. Journal of Ecotoxicology and Environmental Monitoring, 16: 185-191.

ID: 60563
Title: Physical Chemical and Biological Parameters of Water from Medical Waste Dumpsites in South-Western Niger Delta, Nigeria.
Author: Marian Isi Akinbo and Prekeyi Tawari-Fufeyin.
Editor: Professor V. Subramanian
Year: 2014
Publisher: Capital Publishing Company.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution.vol.11 (4) 83-88 (2014)
Subject: water, Environment and Pollution.
Keywords: Biological, chemical, medical wastes, physical, water, Nigeria.
Abstract: Water pollution by effluent has become a question of considerable public and scientific concern in the light of evidence extreme toxicity to human health and to biological ecosystems. Hospital wastewater poses serious health hazard to healthworkers, the general public and the environment. This study was conducted to determine the physical, chemical and biological parameters of hospital wastewater in South-western Niger Delta, Nigeria. Water samples were collected from the Federal Medical Center, Owo, Ondo State, University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Irrua Teaching Hospital, Irrua, Stella Obasanjo Hospital, Benin City, Edo State and Central Hospital, Warri, Delta State and from general (non-medical) dumpsites in all the locations where the medical wastes were collected, and these served as controls. The water samples were collected were analyzed using standard techniques. There was no significant difference n physical, chemical and biological qualities of water from medical and non-medical waste dumpsites (P >0.05). The only organism isolated was Bacillus species while Aspergillus species was the only fungi found in this study with total counts within acceptable limits. Medical and non-medical wastes do not have significant impact on physical and chemical properties of surface water.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Abd El-Gawad, H.A. and M.A.Aly. (2011). Assessment of aquatic environmental for wastewater management quality in hospitals. A case study. Australian J Basic Appl Sci, 5 (7): 474-482. Abdel-Massih, R.M., Melki, P.N., Afif, C. and D. Ziad (2013). Detection of genotoxicity in hospital wastewater of a developing country using SOS chromotest and Ames fluctuation test. J. Enviro Engine Ecol Sci, doi: 10.7243/2013-1323-2-4.
Literature cited 2: Akter, N. (2000). Medical Waste Management: A Review. Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand. Alabi, O.A. and O.S .Shokunbi (2011). Toxicological effects of hospital wastewater using animal bioassays. Ann Biol Res, 2 (2): 265-275.

ID: 60562
Title: Mobilization of Arsenic in the Groundwater of some Char Lands in Meghna Basin, Bangladesh: A Mechanistic study.
Author: Md.Mahamud-Ul-Hoque, Md.Abdus Sabur, M.Emdadul Haque and Syed Safiullah.
Editor: Professor V. Subramanian
Year: 2014
Publisher: Capital Publishing Company.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution.vol.11 (4) 75-81 (2014)
Subject: water, Environment and Pollution.
Keywords: Arsenic mobilization, char lands, adsorption/desorption, biogeochemical transformations, competitive ions.
Abstract: In this paper, we describe the mechanistic details for arsenic mobilization in some newly formed char lands in Meghna basin, Bangladesh. We measured the concentrations of arsenic along with some other associated parameters involved in the release mechanism of arsenic in sediment-water interface. Total 38 water samples were collected and analyzed from both shallow (60 to 110 feet) and deep (?200 feet ) aquifers and arsenic contaminated hot spots in the shallow aquifers where one spot ' s arsenic concentration is high as 2.5 mg/L which could be second highest arsenic contaminated spot in Bangladesh reported so far. Concentration of arsenic exhibits a clear positive correlation with iron and also with ammonium, bicarbonate and phosphate significantly. From the study, it reveals that reductive dissolution of arsenic-rich iron minerals is primarily responsible for the mobilization of arsenic in the ground water. The presence of other competitive ions such as phosphate and bicarbonate in the adsorption-desorption process were identified for facilitating the mobilization.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Ahmed, F., Bibi, M.H., Ishiga, H., Fukushima, T. and T. Maruoka (2010). Geochemical study of arsenic and other trace elements in groundwater and sediments of the Old Brahmaputra River Plain, Bangladesh. Environ Earth Sci, 60: 1303-1316. Al-Abadleh, H.A. and T. Hoang (2007). Surface speciation o organoarsenicals on iron (oxyhydr) oxides using As-XANES.Activity report, Canadian light source.
Literature cited 2: Anawar, H.M., Akai, J., Komaki, K., Terao, H., Yoshioka, T., Ishizuka, T., Safiullah, S. and K. Kato (2003). Geochemical occurrence of arsenic in groundwater of Bangladesh: Sources and mobilization processes. Journal of Geochemical Exploration, 77: 109-131. Anawar, H.M., Akai, J. and H. Sakugawa (2004). Mobilization of arsenic from subsurface sediments by effect of bicarbonate ions in groundwater. Chemosphere, 54: 753-762.

ID: 60561
Title: Removal of Cadmium from a Sea-food effluent contaminated soil by indigenous biological adsorbents assessed with soil microbial biomass.
Author: M.V.Bindu and V.S. Harikumar.
Editor: Professor V. Subramanian
Year: 2014
Publisher: Capital Publishing Company.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution.vol.11 (4) 69-74 (2014)
Subject: water, Environment and Pollution.
Keywords: Cadmium, biological adsorbents, soil microbial biomass.
Abstract: Low-cost indigenous biological materials such as Dried Biomass of Azolla (DBA), Composted Coir Pith (CCP) and Dried Rice Husk (DRH) were tried as adsorbents for the removal of cadmium (Cd) from a sea-food effluent contaminated soil of south India. Soil incubation with indigenous biological materials significantly decreased the Cd concentration in contaminated soil as compared with non-incubated control. However, the concentration was far low in soils incubated with DBA followed by CCP. Furthermore, the Cd concentration of soil decreased with incubation time. Comparison of the Cd removal from soil revealed that the removal of Cd in treatment incubated with DBA and CCP was more or less on par. The kinetics of Cd adsorption followed the first-order rate expression given by Lagergren. Highest kad value was noticed in treatment incubated with DBA followed by CCP. The present study revealed a significant inverse relationship between soil Cd concentration and soil microbial biomass carbon (SMBC). The SMBC significantly increased in treatments incubated with DBA and CCP.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Alloway, B.J. (1995). Cadmium. In: Heavy metals in soils. B.J. Alloway (ed.), Blackie Academic and Professional, Glasgow, UK. Arulanantham, A., Balasubramanian, N. and T.V. Ramakrishna (1989). Coconut shell carbon for treatment of cadmium and lead containing wastewater. Metal Finishing, 87: 51-55.
Literature cited 2: Bailey, S.E., Olin, T.J., Bricka, R.M and D.D. Adrian (1999). A review of potentially low-cost sorbents for heavy metals. Water Res., 33: 2469-2479. Basta, N.T., Rayan, J.A. and R.LL. Chaney (2005). Trace element chemistry in residual-treated soil. Key concepts and metal bioavailability. Environ. Quality, 34: 49-63.

ID: 60560
Title: Use of heavy metals and trace elements in groundwater as a tool for mineral exploration: A case study from Udawalawe, Srilanka.
Author: D.T. Udagedara, H.M.T.G.A. Pitawala and H.A. Dharmagunawardhane.
Editor: Professor V. Subramanian
Year: 2014
Publisher: Capital Publishing Company.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution.vol.11 (4) 59-67 (2014)
Subject: water, Environment and Pollution.
Keywords: Mineral exploration, groundwater geochemistry, heavy metals, trace elements, serpentine.
Abstract: The geochemistry of regional groundwater has been utilized worldwide to discover subsurface mineral deposits, though it has not yet been practiced in SriLanka. The present study focuses on utilizing geochemistry of groundwater in the Udawalawe area of south-central SriLanka where two serpentine bodies exist within the high-grade crystalline basement. T his area is in the proximity of the litho-tectonic boundary between two metamorphic complexes. Thus, the scope of the study is to uncover geological and geochemical anomalies of potential mineralization. Mode of occurrences and petrography of exposed serpentine bodies and physico-chemical properties of groundwater were investigated to establish a relationship between regional groundwater geochemistry and geological anomalies. The pH and electrical conductivity of groundwater were measured in-situ and concentrations of Al, Ba, Be, Cs, Cu, Fe, Li, Mn, Pb, Rb, Sr and Zn were analysed using atomic absorption and emission spectroscopy. The present study reveals that concentration of these elements are significantly higher close to serpentinite bodies with Cu and Zn having the highest concentrations of Be, Cu, Li, Mn, Pb, Rb and Zn in groundwater in the area between the two exposed serpentinite bodies indicate the possible occurrence of a subsurface mineral deposit in the area. These results indicate the importance and feasibility of the application of regional groundwater geochemistry as a tool for uncovering subsurface mineral deposits. Detailed observations of groundwater flow patterns, facies changes, and associated element mobility could effectively help n accurate demarcation of the lateral extents of mineral deposits.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: APHA (2005). Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, 21sted. Armiento, G., Bellatreccia, F., Cremisini, C. et al. (2012). Beryllium natural background concentration and mobility: A reaapraisal examining the case of high Be-bearing pyroclastic rocks. Environ Monit Assess. Doi: 10.1007/s10661-012-2575-3.
Literature cited 2: Banks, D., Hall, G., Reimann, C. and U. Siewers (1999). Distribution of rare earth elements in crystalline bedrock groundwaters: Oslo and Bergen regions, Norway.Appl. Geochemistry, 14: 27-39. Bhatia, M.RT. and K.A.W .Crook (1986). Trace element characteristics of graywackes and tectonic setting discrimination of sedimentary basins. Contrib to Mineral Petrol, 92: 181-193. doi: 10.1007/BF00375292.

ID: 60559
Title: Groundwater quality assessment around tanneries at Tiruchirappalli, India.
Author: G. Venkatesan, V. Rajagopalan and M .Selvaraj.
Editor: Professor V. Subramanian
Year: 2014
Publisher: Capital Publishing Company.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution.vol.11 (4) 51-57 (2014)
Subject: water, Environment and Pollution.
Keywords: Groundwater quality, groundwater pollution, tanneries, physicochemical parameters.
Abstract: Water as resource, fundamental amenity and universal solvent is shared by inhabitants. The tanning industry is one of the oldest industries in India. The tanning industry is an especially large contributor of pollutants to water resources. Concentration of pollutants more than their permissible limits in potable water leads to health problems, especially in infants .The water samples were taken from the villages Sembattu and Gundur and there are twelve numbers of tanneries working in this area. Various physicochemical parameters such as pH, electrical conductivity, chloride (Cl), total hardness CaCO3 (TH), nitrate (NO3), sulphate (SO4) and alkalinity have been analysed. In the analyses, chloride and hardness content in groundwater were on higher side compared with Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) and World Health Organization (WHO) standards but the level of sulphate was within permissible limit. I t is evident that groundwater quality is gradually getting deteriorated and it may deteriorate further with time. The results envisaged that the quality of groundwater around tanneries areas is poor, and is not suitable for drinking purpose and can only be used after proper treatment.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: American Public Health Association (APHA) (2005). Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, Method 1020. Bosnic, M., Buljian, J. and R.P. Daniels (2000) .Pollutants in Tannery Effluents. United Nations Industrial Development Organization, Vienna, Austria.
Literature cited 2: Giridharan, L., Venugopal, T. and M. Jayaprakash (2009). Assesment of water quality using chemometric tools: A case study of river Cooum, South India. Arch. Environ. Contam.Toxicol, 56 (4): 654-669. Kan, C.C., Chen, W.H., Wan, M.W., Phatai, P., Wittayakun, J. and K.F.Li (2012). The preliminary study of iron and manganese removal from groundwater by NaOCl oxidation and MF filtration. Sustain Environ. Res., 22 (1): 25-30.

ID: 60558
Title: Aquatic toxicity of antibiotic contaminant Doxycycline Hydrochloride on Cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa
Author: Liang Wu, Jie Wang, Ying Zhang, Lumei Wang and Jing Ye.
Editor: Professor V. Subramanian
Year: 2014
Publisher: Capital Publishing Company.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution.vol.11 (4) 45-50 (2014)
Subject: water, Environment and Pollution.
Keywords: Cyanobactria, doxycycline hydrochloride, oxidative stress, lipid peroxidation.
Abstract: Veterinary antibiotics have been used extensively in many countries to treat diseases and protect the health of animals. As they are poorly adsorbed in the gut of the animals, the majority of antibiotics are excreted unchanged in faeces and urine. Therefore, antibiotic contaminants in aquatic ecosystems may pose physiological effects on aquatic lives. In the present study, growth inhibition and oxidative damage in cyanobacteria Microcystis aeruginosa exposed to doxycycline hydrochloride were investigated. The results showed that doxycycline hydrochloride could inhibit the growth of M. aeruginosa under laboratory conditions. The inhibition percentages after 24 h, 48 h, 72 h, and 96 h exposure at the concentration of 1 mg/L were 8.13 %, 16.49 %, 39.56 % and 55.31 %, respectively. The activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and the concentrations of malondialdehde (MDA) in M.aeruginosa were stimulated by doxycycline hydrochloride after 24 h exposure under a series of concentrations. The results are useful for environmental assessment of antibiotics. Besides, it is also helpful for guiding the application of doxycycline hydrochloride in agricultural settings.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Alscher, R.G., Erturk, N. and L.S. Heath (2002). Role of superoxide dismutases (SODs) in controlling oxidative stress in plants. Journal of experimental Botany, 53: 1331-1341. Bailly, C., Benamar, A., Corbineau, FG. And D. Come (1996). Changes in malondialdehyde content and in superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione reductase activities in sunflower seeds as related to deterioration during accelerated ageing, Physiologia Plantarum, 97: 104-110.
Literature cited 2: Beauchamp, C. and I. Fridovich (1971). Superoxide dismutase: Improved assays and an assay applicable to acrylamide gels. Analytical Biochemistry, 44: 267-287. Cho, U.H and N.H. Seo (2005). Oxidative stress in Arabidopsis thaliana exposed to cadmium is due to hydrogen peroxide accumulation. Plant Science, 168: 113-120.

ID: 60557
Title: A preliminary study on assessment of noise levels in Indian Offices: A case study.
Author: Bijay Kumar Swain, Shreerup Goswami and Madhumita Das
Editor: Professor V. Subramanian
Year: 2014
Publisher: Capital Publishing Company.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution.vol.11 (4) 39-44 (2014)
Subject: water, Environment and Pollution.
Keywords: Office corridors, office noise, noise pollution level, Balasore.
Abstract: The urban noise pollution is growing day by day and has become a universal problem for both the public and the policy-makers. The increase in number of market complexes, growing population and consequently increase in number of vehicles have inevitably caused major noise pollution in different public places and government offices. Now-a-days, there are records of high level of dissatisfaction due to noise incidence in and around different offices. Therefore, an attempt has been made to assess the noise pollution levels at 10 different office corridors in and around the city of Balasore. The noise data collected from different offices displayed wide ranges of noise level varying in three different times (10-12 noon, 1-3 pm and 3-5 pm). The maximum noise level was assessed at RTO office (83.4 dB), while minimum was assessed at Head Post Office (43.7 dB). Also, the maximum equivalent noise level was assessed at RTO office (75.3), while minimum was assessed at Income Tax office (58.3). The maximum noise pollution level (NPL) and Noise Climate (NC) were assessed at RTO office (96.6) and Collectorate office (26.5) and minimum was assessed at Inspector of Schools (70.4) and at Horticulture office (11.2) respectively.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Babisch, W. (2005). Noise and Health. Environmental Health Perspectives, 113 (1): 14-15. Banerjee, D. and S.K. Chakraborty (2006). Monthly variation in night time noise levels at residential areas of Asansol city (India) Journal of Environmental Science and Engineering, 48 (1): 39-44.
Literature cited 2: Bluhm, G., Nordling, E. and N. Berglind (2004). Road Traffic Noise and Annoyance-An Increasing Environmental Health Problem. Noise and Health, 6: 43-49. Chakraborty, D., Santra, S.C. Mukherjee, A.L., Roy, B. and P. Das (2002). Road Traffic Noise in Calcutta Metropolis, India. Indian Journal of Environmental Health, 44 (33): 173-180.

ID: 60556
Title: Supply Water Quality in Urban Bangladesh: A case study of Chittagong Metropolitan City.
Author: Morshed Hosan Molla, Mohmmad Abu Taiyeb Chowdhury, Kazi Md. Barkat Ali, Md. Habibur Rahman Bhuiyan, Reaz Mohammad Mazumdar and Suman Das.
Editor: Professor V. Subramanian
Year: 2014
Publisher: Capital Publishing Company.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution.vol.11 (4) 27-38 (2014)
Subject: water, Environment and Pollution.
Keywords: Water quality, environment, contamination, health impacts, monitoring, management.
Abstract: Drinking water quality in urban Bangladesh is at high risk. The port city of Chittagong is not only facing the problem of inadequate water supply but also serious threat due mainly to the scarcity of safe water. This paper attempts to characterize and analyze the supply water quality in Chittagong Metropolitan City (CMC) from health and environmental perspective using a set of parameters: physical, chemical and micro-biological. The paper focuses on key challenges facing the sector today, especially in the provision of urban water service delivery. The thrust there has been to identify weakness in current water supply management, and explore options to address the chronic lack of service provisions. The overall finding is that the dwellers of CMC have been suffering from irregular, inadequate and unsafe water supply due mainly because o f inefficient management practices. The situation is worse in low income residential areas. Regular monitoring of water quality along the distribution networks, timely repair and maintenance, improving information systems, uses of advanced technology, provisions for staff training, awareness building among users and stakeholders, and promotion of community-based co-management governing systems have been strongly suggested.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Amin, M.O. (2006). Status of Water and Sanitation Services in Chittagong Water Supply and Sewerage Authority, Bangladesh. Capacity Building Workshop on Partnerships for Improving the Performance of Water Utilities in the Asia and the Pacific Region.UNCC, Bangkok.
Literature cited 2: APHA (2003). Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater. 4th edition. American Public Health Association /America Water Works Association/Water Environment Federation, Washington DC, U.S.A.